Skate Canada 2014 - Men's Final
After winning the short programme, Javier Fernandez is halfway through to victory, but any mistake he makes might be an advantage for Takahito Mura and Konstantin Menshov. However, the same can be said about them and the guys waiting in the wings for a chance to step on the podium. Let's see if any of them manage to exceed our expectations.
Adam Rippon makes good use of his flexibility, but his triple Axels are giving him a hard time. He misses two and barely lands the third. I'm afraid this isn't a major improvement from yesterday. His score: 139.09. Overall: 201.92.
You can see the exact moment when Liam Firus draws his breath in and gets into character. His routine proves that the change in musical rules was a good idea. Instead of just skating to the soundtrack of Moulin Rouge, he skates to the story itself as it is narrated by one of the actors. His biggest mistake is over-rotating the triple Axel. He gets 133.97 points. Overall: 198.91.
There's a small part in the choreography where Andrei Rogozine truly attacks the flamenco, but apart from that, there's barely any trace of the dance. He also makes some minor mistakes on a few jumps. His score: 131.45. Overall: 202.40.
How original is Florent Amodio's tribal costume? And how perfectly it matches a routine set to the soundtracks of Blood Diamond and Lion King. This programme truly feels like a tribute to African culture and as an admirer of the black continent, I couldn't be more pleased. Is it too soon for me to say that this is a masterpiece? I don't think so. Unluckily, he gets too excited about it for a second and falls on the last spin. He gets 143.57 points. Overall: 215.71.
Speaking of works of art on ice, Michal Brezina's The Marriage of Figaro should have been a witty, highly entertaining routine with excellent elements. Instead, it is a painful-to-watch series of falls, missed quads and awkward landings. Maybe next time then... His score: 134.95. Overall: 208.24.
Takahiko Kozuka glides effortlessly across the ice to Andrea Boccelli's romantic voice just to stumble upon the elements. He double-foots the quad and struggles with various combinations. He gets 127.32 points. Overall: 203.17.
Just like with his short programme, I find Max Aaron's Gladiator to be lacking in details. There's not much insight into the story, the costume says nothing to me and I can't really see the point of the dialogue at the beginning. That being said, oddly enough, I like his skating style. It's straightforward and technically strong. His score: 155.27. Overall: 231.77.
Just when I begin to be enthralled by Stephen Carriere's routine, he falls on the triple Axel. That is no way to play with people's feeling, Stephen. Once he gets past the generic Claire de Lune, the routine really grows in depth and personality. I am looking forward to seeing this again. He gets 151.34 points. Overall: 231.67.
My favourite thing about Konstantin Menshov, nay what makes him my favourite Russian, is the way he uses his entire body to tell a story - he scribbles something in the air, he covers his head with his hands in distress... And there's almost no change in music he doesn't express. Unfortunately, his elements might not be good enough today. His score: 143.33. Overall: 231.67.
Nothing can go wrong for Takahito Mura tonight. His interpretation of Phantom of the Opera is spot on, even though his use of the white glove as the Phantom's mask is not unique. He will really put pressure on Fernandez now. He gets 173.24 points. Overall: 255.81.
The pressure does weigh on Javier Fernandez. He falls on his third quad and doesn't really ace either of the first two. All we can do now is wait for a better day because under different circumstances, this Barber of Seville routine would be glorious. His score: 158.51. Overall: 244.87.
Well, exceed our expectations they did. Takahito Mura pulls off a phenomenal skate and goes home with the gold. Javier Fernandez has to settle for the silver after a faulty performance. The greatest surprise of the night though is without a doubt Max Aaron, who 'steals' the bronze not only from Menshov, but also from his countryman, Carriere.
Adam Rippon makes good use of his flexibility, but his triple Axels are giving him a hard time. He misses two and barely lands the third. I'm afraid this isn't a major improvement from yesterday. His score: 139.09. Overall: 201.92.
You can see the exact moment when Liam Firus draws his breath in and gets into character. His routine proves that the change in musical rules was a good idea. Instead of just skating to the soundtrack of Moulin Rouge, he skates to the story itself as it is narrated by one of the actors. His biggest mistake is over-rotating the triple Axel. He gets 133.97 points. Overall: 198.91.
There's a small part in the choreography where Andrei Rogozine truly attacks the flamenco, but apart from that, there's barely any trace of the dance. He also makes some minor mistakes on a few jumps. His score: 131.45. Overall: 202.40.
How original is Florent Amodio's tribal costume? And how perfectly it matches a routine set to the soundtracks of Blood Diamond and Lion King. This programme truly feels like a tribute to African culture and as an admirer of the black continent, I couldn't be more pleased. Is it too soon for me to say that this is a masterpiece? I don't think so. Unluckily, he gets too excited about it for a second and falls on the last spin. He gets 143.57 points. Overall: 215.71.
Speaking of works of art on ice, Michal Brezina's The Marriage of Figaro should have been a witty, highly entertaining routine with excellent elements. Instead, it is a painful-to-watch series of falls, missed quads and awkward landings. Maybe next time then... His score: 134.95. Overall: 208.24.
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| Javier Fernandez as The Barber of Seville Photograph: The Canadian Press |
Just like with his short programme, I find Max Aaron's Gladiator to be lacking in details. There's not much insight into the story, the costume says nothing to me and I can't really see the point of the dialogue at the beginning. That being said, oddly enough, I like his skating style. It's straightforward and technically strong. His score: 155.27. Overall: 231.77.
Just when I begin to be enthralled by Stephen Carriere's routine, he falls on the triple Axel. That is no way to play with people's feeling, Stephen. Once he gets past the generic Claire de Lune, the routine really grows in depth and personality. I am looking forward to seeing this again. He gets 151.34 points. Overall: 231.67.
My favourite thing about Konstantin Menshov, nay what makes him my favourite Russian, is the way he uses his entire body to tell a story - he scribbles something in the air, he covers his head with his hands in distress... And there's almost no change in music he doesn't express. Unfortunately, his elements might not be good enough today. His score: 143.33. Overall: 231.67.
Nothing can go wrong for Takahito Mura tonight. His interpretation of Phantom of the Opera is spot on, even though his use of the white glove as the Phantom's mask is not unique. He will really put pressure on Fernandez now. He gets 173.24 points. Overall: 255.81.
The pressure does weigh on Javier Fernandez. He falls on his third quad and doesn't really ace either of the first two. All we can do now is wait for a better day because under different circumstances, this Barber of Seville routine would be glorious. His score: 158.51. Overall: 244.87.
Well, exceed our expectations they did. Takahito Mura pulls off a phenomenal skate and goes home with the gold. Javier Fernandez has to settle for the silver after a faulty performance. The greatest surprise of the night though is without a doubt Max Aaron, who 'steals' the bronze not only from Menshov, but also from his countryman, Carriere.
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